


Reunion (Redux)

by enogk07



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Breakup, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-08
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2019-07-08 18:04:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15935531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enogk07/pseuds/enogk07
Summary: Logan attends his high school reunion, and dreads seeing a certain ex. But by the end of the night, he'll realize just what he took for granted. [REVISED REPOST OF A STORY THAT I WROTE EARLIER]





	Reunion (Redux)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Reunion](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14811362) by [enogk07](https://archiveofourown.org/users/enogk07/pseuds/enogk07). 



"But look, again, I'm really sorry this is so last minute. You'll survive though, I promise! Talk to you later?"

"Yeah, sure thing. Talk to you later."

Logan hung up the phone with Virgil and fought off the lump that was forming in his throat. He tossed his phone on the bed, and looked in the mirror as he tightened his tie. If he wasn't already dreading his five-year high school reunion, the news that his best friend had to bail at the last minute certainly did him in. Virgil was the only person who could get him through these kinds of things...at least since the breakup, anyway.

As he finished getting ready and got into his car, he couldn't help but wonder how things would go in that regard. Was Patton even going to be there? They hadn't had the least bit of contact since graduation...

He pulled over for a moment, seriously considering if it was worth showing up at all anymore. But no, that wasn't fair. Marco was hosting it at their mansion, and although they and Logan were barely more than acquaintances, they seemed genuinely excited when Logan had told them he was coming. Marco was perfectly nice, and so Logan resolved to go, if only for their benefit.

So he started his car again and moved on down the road, and eventually he reached the aforementioned mansion. Even from where he was parked across the street, he could hear loud music going on inside, and he groaned internally.

"Hey look, Logan's here, everyone!" A very drunk Remy was the first sight that Logan encountered as he entered the noisy party. He shook himself off of his inebriated acquaintance, and with a polite nod towards the rest of the latter's friends, he wandered off in search of people whom he at least used to talk to.

Finally he came across the debate team hanging around in the kitchen, and he forced a smile and came up to his old teammates. Mike looked up and ushered him over.

"Hey, Logan! Good to see ya. Can I get you anything to drink?"

"No, I'm fine," Logan insisted. "Thanks though. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm great! Chris and I are in law school and Megan's working at the New York Times. Emily's still in her last year at Stanford."

"What about you, Logan?" Megan spoke up. "We've barely seen you these past four years."

"Yeah, where'd you go to school again?"

Logan shifted uncomfortably. They just had to ask that. "Ohio State," he mumbled.

Chris' face changed. "Oh yeah, right. Well, what do you do now?"

"So what's the New York Times like, Megan?" Logan asked hurriedly, avoiding Chris' follow-up question entirely. But Emily's smirk made it clear enough that the others had gotten the message. Logan's face burned.

"Dude, it's great! It's everything I could have imagined, really."

"Well, cool! I'm glad to hear it," Logan said sincerely.

The five former debaters stood around awkwardly, until finally Logan broke the silence again in a panic. "So have you guys seen anyone else we know yet?"

"Oh yeah, I think the starving artists are over in the living room," Mike said with a sneer.

Logan cocked his head. "You mean...the drama kids?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah, they're just all complaining," he said with a wave of his hand.

"Ugh, who cares?" Megan rolled her eyes. "It's like, of course you're not doing anything with your life, what did you expect?"

Logan just stood off to the side, his heart racing. He didn't know the Drama kids too well either, but just like Remy and Marco, they seemed nice enough and Logan never really had anything against them. But he'd forgotten just how elitist his fellow debaters could be.

He had to act fast. He couldn't eliminate his best chance at social contact...but he also couldn't just stand by while his former teammates said such snobbish things. But then again, at least the debate team wasn't going to pressure him to drink, and he wasn't sure if he'd find that quality anywhere else at the party. But Roman was a good guy, and hey, he'd probably stick up for Logan if he were in that position. But...

"Well, I don't think it's all their fault," he finally blurted out.

And then, instant regret.

"How could it not be their fault?" Chris asked incredulously. "If you go into theatre, you're gonna be staying with your parents for the rest of your life."

Logan peered into the living room. Sure enough, Roman and his posse were sitting on the couch with their drinks and laughing.

"Well, for what it's worth, they don't seem too unhappy," he said cautiously. But immediately he knew it was a mistake--the debate team may have worked well together, but it had been an unspoken rule throughout high school that the five of them always agreed with one another.

"Eh, that's just the beer talking," Emily said with a wave of her hand. She shuffled Logan away from the doorway. "Trust me, they're not worth getting involved with."

Logan's frowned, but resisted the temptation to linger on the drama club. He returned to his place leaning against the island and, in an attempt to brighten the mood, he said, "Well, I had the honor of seeing Remy the second I walked in here, so that was an adventure."

Chris cracked up. "Oh man, I'm sure that was a sight! Talk about someone who hasn't grown up at all since high school."

Logan blushed a little again. "Yeah. I mean, he was friendly, at least."

"And also the biggest deadbeat Gainesville Prep has ever seen," Megan added pointedly.

"Oh, well I don't think Logan cares too much about that," Emily said with a smirk. "After all, he never really kept the best company during that time either."

Logan threw his head back and forced a laugh with the rest of them. "Ugh, tell me about it. But believe me, that part of my life is totally done now."

"Well good, I'm glad to hear it," Chris said as he patted Logan on the shoulder. Logan gave a weak smile and pulled back.

The other debaters moved on and began talking about the news, but Logan stayed lost in his own head. He was still frustrated with Patton and he doubted the two had anything in common anymore, but selling him out like that made Logan feel disgusting.

Finally the conversation around him was dying down, and Logan took the opportunity to excuse himself. "Well, I'll see you guys around!" he said.

"Yeah, see ya!" Mike gave what appeared to be a friendly wave, but Logan could hear them all cracking up as he left the kitchen.

Logan ducked his head and entered the living room, in hopes that the drama kids would make better company. As it was, Roman perked up at the sight of him and ushered him over.

"Oh hey, Logan! It's great to see ya! When did you get here?"

Logan smiled and checked his watch. "Around twenty minutes ago. And you guys?"

"Oh, we've been here for hoouuurs," Greg drawled. Logan forced a smile and folded into himself, but sat down next to Roman on the couch anyway.

"S'Logan, what have you been up to nowadays?" Will asked, ruffling his head.

"Uh, not a whole lot, just in between stuff, I guess," Logan faltered. It may not have put him in the best light, but at least it was better than the truth...

"Yo, us too!" Grace said, and offered Logan a high five. Logan smiled a little and tried to relax.

"So, how have you all spent your time since graduation, anyway?" he asked casually.

"Welp, our buddy Roman here went to Tallahassee State's best theatre program ever, and Grace and Greg went to Delaney University up in New York. Buuuut I've just been doing whatever," Will said.

"Oh, that makes sense! Yeah, I went to--"

"So, Grace, how's that car hunt looking?" Greg interrupted. Logan's face fell, but he shrugged it off and turned to Grace for the answer.

"Oh, it's coming along," she replied. "My boyfriend and I haven't found much in our budget yet, but we're looking."

"That's cool! Is there anything you want in particular?" Logan tried again.

Grace shrugged. "Not really. A car's a car, y'know?" She picked up her can of beer and finished it off.

Suddenly, the sight of the can made Will's face light up. He turned back to Logan. "Oh hey, do you want anything to drink?"

Logan shook his head. "Nah, I'm good. Thanks though."

"Suit yourse-elf," Grace singsonged, and stood up to get more.

The rest of the Drama kids sat in silence in the meantime, until Will got swept up by some of his other friends. Greg pulled out his phone and migrated to the other couch, and Logan and Roman were left alone.

Roman turned to Logan and studied his face. "Sorry," he said carefully.

Logan tilted his head. "Hey, don't be sorry! I'm the one who made things awkward. I mean, I never knew I had the ability to single-handedly kill a conversation, but you learn something new every day, right?"

Roman rolled his eyes. "You didn't single-handedly kill the conversation. Greg shouldn't have interrupted you like that, and frankly Grace could have given you more of an answer to your question. That said though, I think Will left because he knew you were uncomfortable," he pointed out.

He jerked his head at that last part, and Logan looked behind him to notice that Will was now hanging around the much chagrined debate team. Logan caught Emily's eye and snickered, and turned back to Roman.

"I guess I never thought of it that way," he admitted.

"Yeah, he's really good about that kind of thing," Roman said. He put his hand over his heart. "But seriously, I'm sorry for my friends, and I'm sorry that I didn't stick up for you."

Logan nodded and lowered his eyes. "Apology accepted," he muttered. But his head was already spinning.

If his selling Patton out with the debate team didn't make him feel bad enough, seeing Roman do the right thing certainly did. All the times that Patton had tried to hang around the debate team only to get talked over and discreetly made fun of, and only now did Logan see that he just wanted to be included. No wonder he hadn't really objected when Logan had said he wanted to break up...

He swallowed hard and wandered around for the next twenty minutes, getting lost in chat after chat with vague acquaintances that he really didn't care about. He made a point to be nice and listen to everyone and ask questions, but the guilt was still looming over him.

Exhausted and depressed, he eventually headed back towards the main entrance and went to grab his coat. But on the way there, he ran into Marco.

"Oh hey, Logan! Glad you could make it...gone so soon?"

The host's genuine friendliness gave Logan a twinge of guilt, but he said, "Yeah, I've got a lot to do tomorrow so I should probably head out."

"Aw, that's too bad! I know Patton was looking for you. Hang on, let me see if I can find him!"

Logan looked up, and his eyes shined with hope. So Patton was here after all! Maybe they had a second chance to work things out. They could talk it over, and make up, and leave the party together like nothing had ever happened...

"Logan!"

The solemn college grad looked up, and relief instantly flooded over him. Patton still looked like a high schooler, and he was terribly underdressed, but frankly his mere sobriety was a huge breath of fresh air.

For the first time that night, Logan grinned fully. He opened his arms wide. "Hey, Patton! Good to see you!" The two hugged tightly for several moments before separating and moving to sit on the bench next to the coat rack.

"So, what are you up to these days?" Logan asked cheerfully.

"I get to teach gymnastics to kids every day. It's so much fun! You should see them, they're all adorable. What about you?"

Logan took a deep breath and looked around quickly. He'd been avoiding the matter all night, but for the first time since he got to the mansion...he finally felt safe enough to say it.

"Oh, I'm just working at Rite-Aid in the mornings," he said with a shrug. "Nothing too exciting."

"Aw, well that sounds relaxing! You get to have time off, at least." Patton said cheerfully.

Logan looked up. He studied Patton's face, but for the first time that night found no signs of irony or judgment.

"Yeah, I guess so. So, what is children's gymnastics like, anyway?" he asked hurriedly.

Patton brightened up. "Oh, it's so much fun! The kids there are all so nice to each other. You wouldn't even believe it. Like, one time this little girl finally did a chin-up for the first time after trying for, like, a week, and the next day her two best friends came in with a card they made for her to celebrate."

A smile spread across Logan's face. "That's...honestly the most adorable thing I've heard all night. Maybe even all year."

"Well, what's working at Rite-Aid like? I'm sure you must have some interesting stories yourself."

Logan thought for a moment. "Well, I wish I could say that my days are filled with such a level of wholesomeness...but I'm sure there are a few stories about annoying customers that I could tell you!"

Patton laughed, and before long, the two were busy trading anecdotes, not only from their jobs but also from all of college. Pretty soon several hours had passed, and the party was winding down.

Logan looked around as the people around them grabbed their coats, and tensed up. If they were going to fix things, they had to do it now.

He took a deep breath and swallowed back another sob, and leaned in for a hug. He rested his head on Patton's shoulder for a few moments, just like he used to, and then he drew back.

"Hey, Patton?" he said shyly.

Patton drew back. "Yeah?"

"I'm really sorry for everything I said at graduation," he began. "I let our elitist prep school define for me what maturity was, and I was completely ignorant to the fact that it was standing right in front of me."

Patton sat down on the bench again and looked up at Logan solemnly. "Really?

Logan nodded and sat down next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Really."

Patton rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "But I don't know how to dress and I don't know what's going on in the world and I spend the majority of my life hanging around six-year-olds. Everyone else is actually doing something important."

"But you're nice," Logan insisted. "You're the only person I've talked to tonight that I didn't think was gonna laugh at me at any second. You're genuine, and you care about people, and you're a great listener, and that's more than I can say for half the people here tonight. Not to mention the fact that your being good with kids has actually landed you a job."

Patton nodded and looked straight ahead. "I guess that makes sense."

Logan frowned and leaned back. "I really hurt you, didn't I?"

"Yeah. You did."

"So what are you saying, exactly?" he asked as he swung his feet.

"Well...I don't know," Patton said shakily. "I've had fun talking to you. It's been so long since we've seen each other and I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss having you in my life."

A glimmer of hope flashed in Logan's eyes. "And I'm a different person now," he said eagerly. "If we started over again then we wouldn't have to deal with all of that fighting and insecurity and nonsense."

He grasped Patton's hands, but the other pulled back and put one of them up. "Slow down, Logan. You're getting ahead of yourself here," he said firmly.

Logan's stomach dropped. "How so?"

Patton took a few moments to think things over, and finally he said, "If you're really interested in starting over, then we can start over--as friends. And if that goes over well, then we can revisit this relationship thing, alright?"

Logan nodded and felt his lower lip tremble. "Alright."

Patton put a hand on Logan's shoulder. "I'm glad we had this conversation, and I'm glad to hear you've changed your mind about things. And oh my goodness, I've _missed_ you. But I also need you to understand that an apology isn't a magic wand that can undo all the harm you've caused."

"Right," Logan choked out as the tears began to fall.

"So...what do you say?" Patton asked after giving Logan a few minutes to collect himself. "Can we be friends again?"

Logan wiped his eyes and took a quivering breath. He turned to face Patton, and stuck his hand out.

"Hi there, I'm Logan. It's nice to meet you!"


End file.
